Constructions of identity–who I am and who we are–shape the cultural landscape and are central to political alignments and advocacy across the socio-economic spectrum. Centering the study of people as individuals, communities and societies, Cultural & Social Identities (CSI) investigates how identities shape social relations and cultural flows between local and global contexts. Drawing from tools of the social sciences (anthropology, sociology, psychology, geography, education, linguistics) and the humanities (art, literature, media studies, philosophy), CSI examines how groups and individuals make meaning, construct social relations, and distribute power. CSI courses analyze the building-blocks of identity, such as values, naming, branding, group affiliations and behaviors, and group politics and modes of expression. We introduce students to effective research methods and practices, including analysis of culture and politics, observations of public life and space, and in-depth interviews and focus groups. Our graduates are well-poised to pursue careers in a wide variety of fields including, law, education, psychology, journalism, marketing, public relations, and public policy.
Cultural and Social Identities
- Migration and Transnational Identities
- Gender and Sexuality
- Film, TV and Visual Representation
- Transregional Perspectives: Travel and Tourism
- Ethnic, National and Racial Identities
- Cultural Politics of Food, Sports, Dance, Museums, etc.
- The Politics of Fashion, Branding and Advertising
- Cultural Analysis of Education, Health, Disability
- Field Study: Qualitative and Quantitative Research
- The Effects of Images and Texts in the Graphics of Various 20th-Century's Totalitarian and Authoritarian Regimes, by Kang “Zhe” Liu
- Homosexuality with Chinese Characteristics: Constructing Gay Identity and Queer Space in Urban China, by Ian Kumamoto, winner Best Overall Thesis 2019
- Food, Culture and Immigration: The Turkish Immigrant Experience as Told by Restaurant Owners In London and New York, by Yasmin Güleç
- Queering University Spaces: A Visual Linguistic Comparison of French and English in Producing Socio Cultural Inclusivity, by Abigail Luo, winner Best Overall Thesis 2020
- Tongue-Tied in Taiwan: Linguistic Diversity and Imagined Identities at the Crossroads of Colonial East Asia, by Yu-Chen Eathan Lai, winner Best Overall Thesis 2018
- Written on the Wall: Resistance Culture and its Representation in the Occupied Palestinian Visual Public Sphere
Mitra Rastegar, Chair
Research: Transnational Feminism; Cultural Studies; Islamophobia & Representations of Muslims; Secularism and Liberalism; Racism/Racialization; Affects/Emotions
Jeannine Chandler
Research: Sectarianism in Tibetan Buddhism; Tibetan Buddhism in the West; Representations of Shangri-La; Asia and Asians from Western perspective; Asian diasporas; Nationalism and identity formation of minority groups in Asia; history of emotions; intersections of religion, psychology and violence
Ida Chavoshan
Research: English as a(n) Additional/Second/Foreign Language, Academic Writing, Global Englishes, Cognitive Linguistics, Teaching of Culture, Multimodalities, Classroom Pedagogy, Second Language Acquisition, Sociocultural Theory, Systemic Functional Linguistics
Ifeona Fulani
Research: Literatures of Africa and the African Diaspora; Black Cultural Studies; Caribbean Studies; Black Feminism; Literatures of Migration
Cammie Kim Lin
Research: Food Studies, Food Writing, English Education, Public Education, Critical Mixed Race Studies, Multiracial/Multiethnic Identity, Young Adult Literature, Queer Pedagogy
Carol Lo
Research: Second Language Pedagogy; Conversation Analysis; Discourse Analysis; Pedagogical Interaction; Video-Mediated Family Interaction; Emotion/Affect in interaction
Roberta Newman
Research: Critical Sports Studies; Global Advertising and Branding; American Popular Culture; American Cultural History; Contemporary Pilgrimage Practices; Illustration and Graphic Design; 19th Century Popular Horror Literature
Adedamola Osinulu
Research: Global Pentecostalism; African Christianity; Space and Place
Christopher Packard
Research: 18th and 19th Century Literary Cultures; 19th Century Queer Westerns, Self-Representation by Minorities in North America, 1700-1830; Creative Writing
Marian Thorpe
Research: Indigenous Rights; Human Rights; Environmental Justice; International Conservation and Development; Climate Change Politics; Race and Ethnicity in Latin America
Deborah Williams
Research: Feminist literary history and historiography; Writing and composition pedagogy; Children’s literature; Global liberal arts education; Creative writing
Questions?
Mitra Rastegar
Cultural and Social Identities Chair mer341@nyu.edu Office Hours: Monday/Wednesday 12:30-1:30 or by appointment.Ian Kumamoto
GLS'18
“CSI gave me both the freedom and the rigorous academic backbone to delve into topics that, quite literally, opened up the world to me. CSI helped me see that having genuine curiosity about myself and others will carry me much further than any resume or internship ever could.”
—Ian Kumamoto, GLS ‘18